Psalm 16

PSALM 16

"Eternal Life for One Who Trusts"

Psalm 16 holds a great truth in verse 5:

Lord, You have assigned me my portion and my cup; You have made my lot secure.

 Elizabeth Elliot makes this comment about verse 5:

             I know of no greater simplifier for all of life.  Whatever happens is assigned.  Does the intellect balk at that?  Can we say that there are things that happen to us that do not belong in our lovingly assigned "portion?"  Are some things, then, out of the control of the Almighty?  Every assignment is measured and controlled for my eternal good.  As I accept the given portion, the other options are cancelled.  Decisions become much easier, directions clearer, and hence my heart becomes inexpressibly quieter.  A quiet heart is content with what God gives.    

Author Linda Dillow also notes this:

God fills our cup with our 'portion,' what He determines best for us.  Our 'portion' is our physical and emotional being, our abilities, circumstances, roles and relationships. 

Great definition:  Contentment is accepting God's sovereign control over all of life's circumstances.

TO REMEMBER:  someone has to be "in control" of our lives in this out-of-control world.  When we choose to let God be in charge, instead of ourselves, we become women of contentment.

My favorite illustration of this truth of accepting God's sovereignty is the

STORY OF THE TWO MONKS: 

     "I need oil," said an ancient monk, so he planted an olive sapling.  "Lord," he prayed, "it needs rain that its tender roots may drink and swell.  Send gentle showers."  And the Lord sent gentle showers.  "Lord," prayed the monk, "my tree needs sun.  Send sun, I pray thee."  And the sun shone, gilding the dripping clouds.  "Now frost, my Lord, to brace its tissues," cried the monk.  And behold, the little tree stood sparking with frost, but in the evening it died. 
     Then the monk sought the cell of a brother monk, and told his strange experience.  "I, too, planted a little tree," he said, "and see!  It thrives well.  But I entrust my tree to its God.  He who made it knows better what it needs than a man like me.  I laid no condition.  I fixed not ways or means.  'Lord, send what it needs,' I prayed, 'storm or sunshine, wind, rain or frost.  Thou hast made it and Thou dost know.'"

May we all bend our hearts to God's sovereign will as monk #2, and pray with that mindset - He has made us and knows what we need!

WHAT CAN I LEARN ABOUT GOD THROUGH THIS PSALM:

• My goodness is nothing apart from God
• God is the portion of my inheritance and my cup
• God maintains my lot
• The Lord gives me counsel
• The Lord is at my right hand and I shall not be moved
• God shows me the path of life
• Fullness of joy & pleasures are with God eternally

HOW CAN I PRAISE GOD THROUGH THIS PSALM:

• I praise the Lord for my preservation, and that He maintains my lot.  How I rejoice in my position in Him!
• My heart praises God that I have a good inheritance. 
• I bless the Lord that He gives me counsel through His word.  May we all read, search, and learn His word!
• I praise God that, by His side, I shall not be moved. 
• I praise the Lord that He shows me the path of life, and that in His presence is fullness of joy.

PRAYER:

      Father, eternal life is so hard for my finite mind to grasp!  Above all, O Lord, I praise You that eternal life is mine through Your Son, Jesus Christ.  I know I will have fullness of joy in Your presence, even though I admit I lack so much understanding of that concept. 

     O Lord, I pray that You will reveal to me the path of life, and that I will never depart from Your way.  Guide me with Your counsel.  I pray that I would go to Your word first when I am seeking - that I would not be swayed by culture or popular magazine articles or professional "opinions" that are not in agreement with what the Bible has to say.  May I hide Your word in my heart so that I am 'rooted and grounded' in truth.

     Father, my heart blesses You that You maintain my lot.  May I ever rest in the security of that fact.  I know that I have a good inheritance from Your hand.  May I live such a life, O Lord, that I always set You before me and keep my gaze fixed on You.  
     In Jesus' name I pray ~ Amen